On the Minister's Mind
by Rev. Randolph Dieter
The universe doesn’t speak English. It speaks passion and intention. Let me try that again. A lonely person can take a dozen classes on how to attract the perfect mate. They can read every book, attend every workshop, practice every technique. But unless and until they stop coming from a place of loneliness, they either won’t meet anybody or the people they DO attract will make them wish they hadn’t. Sound familiar? This is a universal truth.
Maybe you want to work on your prosperity. You can learn all the law of attraction affirmations and sleep with a copy of The Secret under your pillow, but if your essential worldview is one of lack and separation, you’ll never get where you want to go. Either the ship won’t come in, or when it does, you’ll be at the airport.
Before any words are spoken, your prayer is your paradigm. So, what do you see? What do you respond to? Where does your passion land?
If taking a vow of poverty (for example) means that you’re living in the context of money, you’re still a great big materialist regardless of how much cash you have on hand. The universe doesn’t hear your “yes” or “no” in the way that it hears your intention and focus. A vehement “no” is a lot of emphasis placed on a negative outcome, which is never healthy. This is one reason why acting from fear never really works, and why living in response to a bad guy will never set you free.
We get more of what we pay attention to. Actions and intentions speak louder than words.
If you’re defined by the struggle, you’ll never stop the fight, because it’s who you are. So, what defines you? This is really important, because a lot of people pray a “no whammies” prayer — they say “no negativity,” “no fear,” “no poverty,” or “no sickness,” for example. Some folks spend a lot of time creating emotional, behavioral, and spiritual shields around themselves and the people they love.
It’s well-intentioned, but what do you suppose that attitude will create more of?
As you know, I’m all in favor of taking out the trash. On the other hand, if garbage is all I’m paying attention to, I’m not going to be terribly good at cleaning house.
An emphatic “no” isn’t really a refusal, anyway. If it can get that much of a rise out of you, then you still have something in common with it.
Let’s change gears. There’s no room for accidents in the universe. And that means that in EVERY situation, no matter how ugly, there’s an opportunity to learn and grow, a chance to love with such purity that things either get better or you get a clear signal to move on in peace. Either way, everybody wins.
Let’s not worry about what’s wrong. Let’s stop running. Let’s not live in response to negativity anymore. There’s far too much beauty in the world to spend another nanosecond NOT celebrating it.
What do you see?